Book editor Peter Ginna sees more than a few weak proposals, he writes in this Nieman Storyboard post: "The most critical difference between a book and a magazine or newspaper article is that the publisher has to convince someone to part with 25 dollars or more for this story and ... to invest several hours of his or her life in reading it," Ginna says. "You need a story that has a significance beyond itself, and you need to convey that significance to the reader."
December 18, 2011